Government relaunches rail study: Can Lebanon's trains run again?

Report by Theresia Rahme, English Adaptation by Yasmine Jaroudi

For decades, Lebanon's railway network has existed mostly as a memory of another era. 

Now, authorities are once again attempting to bring part of it back to life through a new project linking the northern city of Tripoli to the Syrian border.

Lebanon once operated a railway system stretching roughly 426 kilometers, including lines connecting Tripoli to the border town of Aabboudiye in northern Lebanon. 

However, with the outbreak of the Lebanese civil war in 1975, train services across the country gradually came to a halt. 

Since 2000, successive governments have floated plans to revive the railway sector, launching studies and promising tenders, but none of the projects have moved beyond the planning phase. The last major feasibility study was conducted in 2016, though implementation stalled mainly because of funding and execution challenges.

Now, from the Port of Tripoli, Public Works and Transport Minister Fayez Rasamny announced the launch of a tender to appoint a consultancy office tasked with updating the Tripoli-Aabboudiye railway study.

The initiative is being carried out in cooperation with the Lebanese Railway and Public Transport Authority and the Port of Tripoli administration.

Officials say the previous study, now nearly a decade old, requires revision to reassess the project's economic feasibility, technical designs, estimated costs, and the most suitable financing model.

The proposed railway line would extend around 35 kilometers inside Lebanese territory and an additional six kilometers into Syria. The route would begin at the Port of Tripoli and pass through Aabdeh and Tal Aabbas before reaching Aabboudiye on the border.  

The primary objective is to facilitate cargo and container transport by linking the Port of Tripoli with regional markets in Syria, Iraq, and the Gulf region.

Lebanese officials also pointed to growing coordination with Syrian authorities following a recent visit by the Lebanese Prime Minister and a ministerial delegation to Syria. Rasamny described the atmosphere surrounding bilateral discussions as positive.

Beyond transportation, proponents argue the project could revitalize the Port of Tripoli, support the local economic zone, create jobs, and strengthen northern Lebanon's competitiveness in regional trade.

Authorities said the updated study will also examine whether passenger rail services could eventually be introduced alongside freight transport.

The study phase is expected to last six months and conclude with the drafting of tender specifications for the project itself. 

Still, major questions remain whether international donors or private investors are willing to finance such a large-scale infrastructure project in a country still struggling to provide a stable and secure investment climate.

Nevertheless, unlike in Beirut, officials note that the railway corridor in northern Lebanon remains largely free of encroachments, meaning the core challenge now lies less in securing land and more in financing and implementation.

Will Lebanon's long-dormant trains finally return to the tracks, or will they remain stalled at the study phase once again?